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Khas Smythe
Khas Smythe is a warrior of Arathi descent. An experienced soldier, he has fought under many banners and beside many a friend during his time. =Appearance= ---- Khas’ visage reflects the years he has lived. The man has lived many of his past forty-odd years among the elements, stalking the wildernesses of Azeroth or among its battlefields, and it shows. He is built with the muscles of a hardened soldier. Standing at a height of approximately six feet, he is not a terribly imposing figure. His hair and beard are a dark brown-black color with flecks of grey spread throughout. His eyes are a stoic emerald green, though they carry a kind gaze when among friends. Arms and Armor Consisting of unadorned steel plate pieces held together by chainmail and boiled leather, his armor allows him the mobility in combat to avoid blows when able and the protection to keep standing when he can't. Though comfortable with most weapons, he can usually be seen wielding a halberd or a bastard sword. A plain steel long knife hangs from his belt. An enchanter or arcanist may recognize that his arms and armor are heavily enchanted. =History= ---- Early Life Khas was born the second child of a simple family in Smallton, a village nestled in the Northern Hills of the Arathi Highlands. His father, Jord, was a skilled blacksmith, and his mother, Gale, was a kind woman. Khas was the younger brother to Duorn, and the older brother to Leyanna. Childhood As a child, Khas would oftentimes venture off into the hills surrounding Smallton, never content to remain in one place for too long. Unlike his brother, he had no interest in learning the finer arts of blacksmithing from his father, an art Jord was eager to pass on to his children. Instead, Khas took after and admired his uncle, Joreg, an armsman in service to the Thane of the region. Khas romanticized the idea of soldiers and knights with their armor and arms, even going out of his way to catch a glimpse of the rare brigade from Stromgarde moving through the region. Coming of Age Despite his sons lack of interest in smithing, Jord still wished him a productive life. Years prior, a small troop of knights lead by a noble of Stromgarde was passing through Smallton. The nobleman wished to survey the metalworking of the region and stopped by Jord's shop where he sold his wares. Jord sold the nobleman his finest blade, forged from strong Arathi steel. The nobleman, known for his eccentricities, was so impressed by the work, he vowed Jord any reasonable favor he could pull in the city of Stromgarde, should Jord continue supplying him with arms when requested. Years later, when Khas had matured to the ripe age of fourteen, Jord called upon that favor. He sent Khas off to Stromgarde with a shirt of chainmail, a basic sword, traveling supplies, and a letter to the nobleman. Upon his arrival to Stromgarde, Khas was made a squire under the nobleman's house. During the next four years, he learned (sometimes to his chagrin) his words, history, the courtesies of nobility, numbers, and most importantly of all, riding, swordplay, and battle tactics. The Second War At the outbreak of The Second War, Khas was given leave from his duties as a squire to join the forces of King Thoras Trollbane in assisting the Alliance of Lordaeron. Khas was stationed at the bridges of the Thandol Span in a footman regiment. He saw some of the fiercest fighting of the North as the men of Arathor fought sword and shield to defend the Span from the orcish incursion. Between the Wars After the conclusion of the war, Khas returned home to Smallton. By this point, his brother Duorn was a trained smith and the family business was doing well thanks to the war. Khas grew restless in the small town, however, and sought greater adventure. The North Guard The northern reaches of the Highlands had always been less tame than the plains to the south. As a result, a coalition consisting of mountaineers, rangers, and other soldiers of the land had taken it upon themselves to see to the defense of the northern realm. The North Guard, or just the Guard, as some would call it, routinely made recruiting rounds through the northern villages and holdfasts. As a child, Khas had eagerly wanted to join, but his father always forbade it. As a young adult, Khas wanted nothing more than adventure. At his earliest opportunity, Khas joined the North Guard. The de-facto leader of the Guard, a ranger by the name of Ced Carovitch, took Khas under his wing and taught him the lay of the land. Khas also grew close with a young man named Barlim, son of Ced, as they were two of the younger members of the Guard. For the next fourteen years or so, Khas patrolled the northern Highlands and southern Hinterlands. The Third War Rumors of plague in Lordaeron trickled down to the Highlands. Early on, there seemed to not be great cause for concern, as Arathor was bordered by mountains to the north and a great wall to the west. However, once news of the Prince's betrayal and the true nature of the plague reached the ears of Ced Carovitch, the Guard was put on high alert. Though the Guard was by no means a great military force, they had the manpower to hold dominion over the three main mountain passes that lead north. For the first year of the War, the Guard saw little activity. Kalimdor When a call to arms went out by the mage Jaina Proudmoore for forces to join her in an expedition west, Khas sought leave to join her. Ced, not anticipating a threat from the undead to the north, allowed Khas and a select few other rangers to join up with the Stromgarde Brigade. Khas joined Proudmoore through her exploits in Kalimdor, serving as a foot soldier under the banner of Stromgarde. Miraculously, he survived the war against the Burning Legion and returned to the new port city of Theramore, where he stayed for the next two years. A New Beginning Guard duty in Theramore had grown stale to the ever-adventurous Khas, so he instead devoted his sword hand to guard duty on a merchant ship traveling the Great Sea. A year of seeing mostly blue ocean was tiring to the soldier, though, and soon, he sought further adventure on Azeroth. The Forgotten Order As the merchant ship pulled into dock at Stormwind Harbor, Khas said his goodbyes to the crew and departed into the city with the clothes on his back and the sword at his side. After several weeks in the city, he stumbled upon a bustling tavern named the Wisps and Spirits. Khas spent much of his time at the tavern between doing the odd jobs beyond the walls in Elwynn Forest, mingling with both the staff and the patrons. The Wisps and Spirits was run by an organization named The Forgotten Order. The Order embraced the idea of peace and was very much against armed conflict with the New Horde, mirroring Jaina Proudmoore's world view. Khas eventually ingratiated himself with the Order, getting along well with its members. He was weary of war and had seen how the races of the New Horde could work with those of the Alliance. The sympathy to its cause and the kindness of its members eventually lead Khas to pledge himself to the Order and become a formal member. His days with The Forgotten Order were some of the easiest of his life. The Order did not seek out armed conflict. Besides running their tavern, their time was mostly spent petitioning the Crown for support of their cause and traveling to other cities of the Alliance. Khas rose through the ranks quickly, devoting nearly all of his time in support of the Order. It was during this period that he also began courting a Night Elf by the name of Setto. The two fell deeply in love and soon enough became inseparable. During an expedition through the wetlands north of Loch Modan, a caravan of Order members was ambushed by a raiding part of Dragonmaw Orcs. The guardians of the Order managed to fend off the attack, but several members were badly injured or killed, Setto among them. The elf had taken several arrows to the chest and Khas could do nothing but watch as she suffocated. The ragged company buried their dead in a makeshift grave and stumbled their way to Menethil Harbor, their visage of peace broken. A Military Career Overcome with grief, Khas departed from the caravan at the harbor, renouncing his membership and saying his goobyes to those gathered. He journeyed north through the wetlands and over the plains of Arathor, eventually arriving back in Smallton. It was his first time home in many years and he cherished the time reuniting with his family. He also learned of the death of his uncle, further adding to his despair. Khas' time in the village was short-lived, however. A Stormpike recruiter passed through the village, pleading for able-bodied men to join the Alliance war effort in Alterac Valley. His ideals shattered, the ranger eagerly signed on with the Dwarf and made his way to the valley to join the fight against the Horde. The soldier served well among the Stormpike Guard, earning their respect and several accolades from the Alliance leadership. Though the war between the Stormpike and Frostwolf remained largely a stalemate, Khas still eagerly met the enemy in battle at every opportunity. Still grieving, he saw it as a penance for the tradgedy wrought upon him in the Wetlands. Into the Dark Portal As the Dark Portal stirred in the south, a call to arms went up to able-bodied adventurers to defend Azeroth from the demons spewing forth. Seeing an opportunity for adventure and glory, Khas took leave the frigid valley and stepped through a portal to Stormwind City. After the demonic incursion had been pushed back through the Dark Portal, Khas eagerly followed. The adventurer embraced the strange, new world and spent the next months traveling Outland. On a return trip to Stormwind, he was recruited by an adventuring company seeking to explore the mysteries of the haunted tower of Karazhan. The company spent several weeks venturing into the tower recovering lost treasures and were eventually granted a boon by the Violet Eye for their investigations. A Time for Hooliganism It was a chance encounter with a group of ruffians that would lead Khas to a life of hooliganism and crime, at least, for a little while. The Felsworn Sail The adventurer had returned to the crowded Pig and Whistle tavern for an evening of casual drinking and people-watching. The tavern attracted all manner rough folk and this evening was no exception. Of note, however, was the group of off-duty Stormwind guardsmen. The precise event that started the brawl is unknown, but in the blink of an eye the patrons of the tavern were in an uproar. On one side, it was the guardsmen asserting their authority, and on the other, a pack of scruffy-looking sailors. Khas, likely due to his scruffy-looking nature, was dragged into the brawl on behalf of the sailors. The guards were sorely beaten and ran from the tavern, vowing to return later on. The sailors left shortly after and allowed Khas to join them, expressing that he should come with them and "lay low" for a while. Not having any prior experience with avoiding law enforcement, Khas followed the group back to their ship. The sailors meant to set sail, and having no further obligations in the city, Khas joined them. The sailors, it turned out, were actually pirates masquerading as traders, and they mistook Khas for a common thief to add to their crew. Their ship was called the Felsworn Sail (they fancied themselves "the Felsworn") and their primary trade was smuggling, though they also boarded ships when the oppourtunity was ripe. It turned out that they were not particularly malicious or effective pirates, though. They were more akin to a group of rascals with a ship. Being a potentially wanted man, Khas joined on with the crew. The work did not align with his morals at first, but as time went on, it became more about the thrill of the jobs and less about the hurt to the victims. They scarcely harmed people during ship boardings and would only truly do so to gain control of the ship. The real victims were the wealthy traders who owned the ships. Being a former ranger, Khas was even able to set up some over-land smuggling operations after a time. Khas continued on with the crew for several years, falling into the routine of things. Eventually, he was even appointed First Mate, even though by those days he spent more time on land than at sea. He had built a great rapport with the crew and continued on more out of loyalty than wealth or thrill. Over time, Khas also became more reckless with his smuggling. One evening while stealing through the mountains to the south of Duskwood, Khas and his crew were caught in a trap by Stormwind militiamen. The smugglers were outnumbered and outgunned and rather than risking death, Khas and his crew laid down their swords and surrendered. The men were marched back to Stormwind and tried for their crimes. The trial was swift and unforgiving and Khas was sentenced to nine years in the Stormwind pen. The Black Company The smuggler wallowed in the Stockades for a time, surrounded by some of the scummiest criminals Stormwind had to offer. When the plague of undeath hit the city, though, Khas saw an opportunity for escape. The plague and ensuing rise of the deceased threw the city into upheaval and securing the Stockades was a low priority for the Stormwind guardsmen. Thus, yet another riot broke out, but this time, the prisoners were able to escape into the city. Khas wandered the city until he came to the Cathedral District, which had been barricaded against the undead. Putting on his best not-a-criminal face, Khas was allowed entrance to the district, and after a brief examination to ensure he was not a plague carrier, was allowed to roam. The District was a mess of activity, containing everything from impoverished townsfolk living in tents to recruiters for every military organization under the sun. The convict knew he needed to gain some form of legitimacy so he may better blend in should the Guard come searching, so he stumbled to the first banner he saw. Beneath the black, skull-sporting banner was a wooden table with two Gnomes standing on top and several Humans and Dwarves standing by the side. Each had their own recruitment call, from "join on and get free snacks!" to "see the world, even if that includes some goblin prisons!" They looked like a group of miscreants, which meant they were Khas' kind of people. He immediately approached them and after signing his name on an intimidating-looking contract, was given a snazzy uniform, volatile talking box, and snacks. The group of miscreants happened to be members of The Black Company, a somewhat professional mercenary company under contract to the Crown of Stormwind. They had been hired to oversee some of the zombie-slaying in the city, and Khas readily joined in on that duty. Armored and with a sword in his hand, he was never recognized by any guardsmen (if they were even looking for him in the first place). War Against the Lich King After the plague subsided, the Company set sail to Northrend along with the rest of the Alliance to bring the war to the Scourge. As the second greatest mercenary company on the face of Azeroth, the Black Company was on the front lines as the Alliance made inroads into the continent. They were even prominent in the assaults on Naxxramas and Icecrown Citadel itself, with Khas fighting on the front lines in both engagements. Losses and Retribution The Company sustained substantial losses with the Cataclysm of Azeroth, with many members ending up dead or missing. They swung back into full force, though, striking back at the Twilight Cult and the minions of Deathwing in battles ranging from Blackrock Mountain to the Firelands. Khas substained a potent injury in the assault on the Firelands, however, and was forced to retire from combat for a time in order to heal. At Deathwing's end, the Company was granted a reprieve, for a time. The Parting of the Mists As the mists around Pandaria parted, the Black Company was called upon once again to serve as an advance assault force. Relying primarily on their own resources, the Company set up a home base in Paw'don Village. Khas, healed from his injury, was right alongside the rest of his comrades in exploring this mysterious new land and defending his allies from the Horde. While the war against the Horde progressed, the membership of the Company was dwindling. Some had simply been lost, some had likely deserted, and others may have perished. At the culmination of the war during the Siege of Orgrimmar, the bulk of the remaining Black contingent suffered heavy casualties. Khas, fed up with the lackluster leadership of the Company, threw in his tabard and retired from the mercenary life. A Life In the North Once again left without a cause, the experienced soldier let it be known that his sword was for hire. It was not long before he was contacted by the Lady Suzanne Vibben, a noblewoman hailing from the far reaches of northern Lordaeron. She expressed an interest in rebuilding her depleted household guard, promising board and pay. The job sounded easy and the soldier was offered a more than reasonable salary, so he accepted the position and journeyed with the lady back to her home. In Service to House Vibben Khas served for several months as a simple armsman, generally escorting the lady in her travels. He spent much of his time at Ebonloch Castle, the seat of the Council of Ebonloch, a coven of magi of which Suzanne was archmage, that served the Kingdom of Lordaeron Restored in much the same way Dalaran served Lordaeron of old. Eventually, he was sent to battle on behalf of the Archmage. He garnered special distinction for himself in the Battle of the Silver Hills, where he defeated the personal guard of the enemy commander in single combat. As his service lengthened, the soldier was trusted with more sensitive tasks. One was to carry out a quest on behalf of Ebonloch and Lady Tamsyn LaVette. Along with the mage-knight Kalvive Powers, he was instructed to infiltrate the duchy of Windcombe on a fact-finding mission. The quest brought the two to a mine that produced lidirite, a substance with potent properties for spellcasters. During their investigation into the mine, they came across a little girl, Jeanie Whitlam, who was clearly being overworked by the foreman. Having already completed their task by that point, Khas opted to liberate the the girl from the clutches of the evil foreman and escape off into the night. Though at first unsure of her new predicament, Jeanie became trusting of her liberator and the two soon bonded. Rather than send her off to an orphanage or allow her to be a servant, Khas took personal responsibility for the girl and soon started raising her as the child he never had. For his efforts on the quest, Lady LaVette also gifted Khas a puppy wieselhund, who he affectionately named Count. Myrwood Although the battle of the Silver Hills was Khas' first act of war undertaken on behalf of Suzanne Vibben, it would not be the last nor the most deadly encounter he would face. Answering a call to arms on behalf of the Archmage, Khas lead a contingent of fifty Eastfold militamen to accompany the Royal Army into the forsaken lands of Myrwood to quell a Scourge uprising. The army soon encountered a scene of death and destruction as they came across the remnants of the Dawnguard vanguard sent before them. In what would come to be known as the Battle of Shattered Stone, the Royal Army was ambushed by a group of crypt lords mounted with cannons. It was not so much a battle as a slaughter and Khas' entire contingent was killed in the first attack while he was seriously wounded, his leg breaking under the weight of his fallen destrier. The foe in Myrwood proved to be more dangerous than anyone had anticipated and with seventy percent of their numbers diminished, the Royal Army found themselves cut off from supplies and reinforcements by strange mists that pervaded the province. After licking their wounds and tending to their dead, the Army set off to find one of their only hopes for survival: Tulloch Hold. Sir Arval Lichterhad spoken of the decrepit fort at one of their haggard war council meetings and the Falconheart Danyl Graves decided making for the hold to be their best chance. The Army arrived at Tulloch and found it inhabited by a strange creature named Dryda, who appeared to be half spider and half woman, along with her brood. After dispatching a colony of cannibals on her behalf, the Royal Army made common cause with Dryda and she allowed them to occupy the Hold. After their pitiful victory at Shattered Stone, the champions of the Queen were eager to strike back at the Scourge. The first strike was an attack on Anub'Azzar, a crypt lord that had a heavy hand in the slaughter at Shattered Stone. Khas was a part of a group of fifteen champions who aimed to bring the monster down at what would be called the Battle of the Fallow Downs. Upon seeing the crypt lord, the champions discovered that it had cannibalized its brethren and grown to monstrous heights. At the command of Sir Theodore Varill, Highlord of the Silver Hand, they charged the monster. It appeared to be nearly impervious to attacks not accompanied by fire, though, and the group found themselves outmatched. Despite Khas' effort to draw the attention of the crypt lord to protect his allies, the champions began dropping like flies. Anub'Azzar's power became too much for them to bear and they were soon defeated, only to be rescued and dragged away to safety by Dryda's children. The third battle in Myrwood that Khas was a part of was the Battle of the Grimworks, an assault on a massive abomination known as Goregut. Like most machinations of the Scourge, Goregut was a monster more useful for its brawns than brains. After seeing it hit several of its allies with a swing of its chain, Khas got the Goregut's attention and positioned himself so that several Scourge necromancers were in between him and the abomination. Goregut focused his attacks on Khas and the knight took a heavy beating, but stayed on his feet until near the end when the abomination was overwhelmed. Before long, the Scourge forces struck back at the Royal Army with an siege on Tulloch Hold. The Queen's forces were holding their own against the incursion until the emergence of Anub'Azzar, since aptly named the "death god." The massive crypt lord began indiscriminantly attacking everything in sight, driven mad by its own power. If not for the timely arrival of Suzanne Vibben with her construct, Edevyn Bayne reinforcing the battle fresh soldiers, and the newly named king Prestor Falomyr atop his chromatic drake, the occupiers of Tulloch Hold would have been decidedly vanquished. With the newly arrived forces, the death god was destroyed once and for all, while the rest of the intelligent Scourge forces had retreated to not be overrun by their former ally. All that was left was for a strike against the orchestrator of the Scourge invasion, the lich lord Archaemian, who had holed up in a dead city known as Starkholme. The Army laid siege to Starkholme with King Falomyr leading the assault. While Falomyr dealt with the undead forces at the gate, the champions charged into the city to face the lich himself. Early on in the battle, Khas faced the Scourge commander head-on and was ravaged by a viscious frost spell. As the soldier skirted the line between life and death, the lich took control of his body and sent him against his allies. The necromancer Sir Terrien Ashmoor wrested control of Khas' mind away from Archaemian before any serious harm could be done and he remained a thrall for the rest of the battle. The lich was eventually defeated thanks to a miraculous intervention by Dame Kauthryn Roland, though Khas was unconscious for the rest of the battle and the day after. For several weeks after that final encounter, Khas suffered nightmares as a result of the possession he underwent. Another consequence of the campaign was growing closer in his friendship with Tamsyn LaVette. The two would often be in eachother's company in their free time and they generally supported one another through the trying times. For his ingenuity in the battle against Goregut, he was granted a blade forged from the beast's chain. Departure Though Khas had been through a lot with those serving under Queen Madelynne, and although he had nearly lost his life on several occasions for her cause, it was not a cause he followed with conviction. When Suzanne Vibben approached Khas about a knighthood, cementing his role in the province of Blackmarsh, he refused the offer and ended his contract with the Archmage. Though he had gained some trusted companions in Blackmarsh, it was not a society he could see himself finding a place in. With the end of his contact, Khas departed Lordaeron and settled in Smallton for a while to spend time with his aging parents. Category:Characters Category:Stromic Category:Warriors Category:Corelas Clan Category:Rangers Category:Blood of Lordaeron Category:House of Smythe